When Code-Switching Fails

A Cricket Commentator's Slip and What It Reveals About Black and Brown Professional Life

Introduction

Earlier this month, during a cricket match between Australia and India, something unexpected happened that sparked intense discussions about race, identity, and the lasting effects of Britain's colonial past.

Isa Guha, a respected cricket commentator, was describing the performance of Jasprit Bumrah, an Indian bowler. During her commentary, she referred to him as "the most valuable primate" - a term that has historically been used as a racist insult against Black and Brown people. What made this incident particularly complex was that Guha herself is British Asian, with Indian heritage.

Isa Guha

Isa Guha broke barriers by becoming the first British Asian woman to play cricket for England. Over ten years, she proved herself as an outstanding player, taking 29 wickets in eight Test matches. After retiring from playing, she transformed herself into one of cricket's most respected commentators, working for major networks like Fox Sports and the BBC.

Her success story seemed to show how much progress cricket had made since its days as a tool of the British Empire. After all, here was a British Asian woman excelling in a sport that was once used to promote ideas of British superiority. She appeared to move comfortably between different worlds - her British identity, her Indian heritage, and the traditionally white, male world of cricket commentary.

But her use of that single word - "primate" - opened up a much deeper conversation. How could someone like Guha, who had experienced racial prejudice herself and actively worked to make cricket more inclusive, use language that echoed colonial racism? The answer isn't simple, but it tells us something important about how deeply colonial attitudes can become embedded in our minds, even when we actively fight against them.

To help us understand this better, we can turn to the work of Frantz Fanon, a writer who studied how colonialism affects people's minds and behaviour. Fanon showed that living in a society shaped by colonialism creates psychological pressures that can affect anyone - even those who seem to have "succeeded" within that society.

Think of it like learning to write with your non-dominant hand. Even after years of practice, under pressure or when tired, you might revert to your dominant hand without thinking. Similarly, people who have grown up in societies shaped by colonialism might unconsciously fall back on colonial attitudes or language, even when they consciously reject those ideas.

How Pressure Points Show Up at Work

Picture being at work and feeling like you constantly have to prove yourself in ways your colleagues don't. Now imagine that pressure multiplied when you're one of the few non-white people in your workplace. This is part of what Fanon called "double consciousness" - the exhausting experience of always being aware of how others might view you because of your race.

For someone like Isa Guha, this plays out in specific ways in the commentary box. While a white commentator might casually chat about cricket, non-white commentators (apart from Mikey Holding) often feel they need to:

· Sound "properly British" while not seeming to reject their heritage

· Show deep cricket knowledge while appearing naturally casual

· Represent their community while fitting seamlessly into the mainstream cricket world

It's like walking a tightrope whilst juggling - one small slip can feel catastrophic.

The Weight of Representing Everyone

Think about how it feels when you're asked to speak for your entire neighbourhood or school. Now multiply that pressure significantly. When you're one of the few Brown people in a prominent position, like Guha, everything you say or do isn't just seen as representing you - it's seen as reflecting on your entire community.

This creates what Fanon called a state of "hyper-vigilance" - being intensely careful about every word and action. Imagine trying to have a relaxed conversation whilst simultaneously running every word through multiple filters in your mind:

· Is this the "right" way to say it?

· How might different audiences interpret this?

· Could this reinforce stereotypes?

· Will this make my colleagues uncomfortable?

When the Pressure Cracks Show

Sometimes, ironically, this constant self-monitoring can lead to exactly the kind of mistake it's meant to prevent. It's like when you're so worried about spilling something that your hands shake, making a spill more likely. The mental energy spent on being constantly careful can create moments where your guard drops unexpectedly.

This helps explain how someone like Guha, who has worked tirelessly to make cricket more inclusive, might unconsciously use language that echoes colonial racism. It's not about personal failure - it's about the immense psychological strain of navigating these complex professional spaces.

This isn't just about cricket or sports commentary. Similar pressures exist across many professions. Think about:

· A Black doctor who must repeatedly prove their expertise whilst maintaining a constantly pleasant demeanour

· An Asian teacher who gets questioned about their ability to teach English literature

· A Black person in management who must seem "professional" but not "intimidating"

The Meeting Room Moment

Imagine Zarah, a British Asian marketing director, leading a high-stakes client presentation. She's prepared extensively, as she always does, knowing she can't afford even a small slip. During the presentation, a white colleague interrupts with a suggestion she'd already covered in detail five minutes earlier. She now faces a familiar dilemma:

If she points out that she's already explained this, she risks being seen as "aggressive" or "difficult". If she politely repeats her explanation, she might appear weak or ineffective. If she acknowledges the interruption as a "good point", she reinforces the invisibility of her own contributions. This split-second decision-making happens whilst maintaining a professional presentation persona and keeping the client engaged.

The Casual Conversation Conundrum

Consider Marcus, a Black barrister in chambers. During a tea break, colleagues are discussing their weekend plans. Someone mentions a new restaurant in Mayfair, and the conversation flows naturally between holiday homes and private members' clubs. Marcus went to Oxford and shares many of his colleagues' experiences, but he's conscious that joining in too enthusiastically might make him seem like he's "trying too hard" to fit in. Stay quiet, though, and he could be seen as unfriendly or failing to be "a team player".

Meanwhile, he's also processing microaggressions that pepper the conversation - a colleague's surprise at learning he skis, another's assumption that he must know about a new urban music venue. Each reaction requires split-second calculations about whether and how to respond.

The Doctor's Daily Double

Dr. Patel, a consultant physician, experiences these pressures in another way. During one morning:

She enters a patient's room and is immediately asked, "When will the doctor be coming?" Despite wearing her consultant's badge and carrying patient charts, she must explain - for the third time that morning - that she is the doctor. She does this whilst maintaining a warm, professional demeanour, knowing that showing any frustration could reinforce stereotypes about "angry Brown women".

Later, in a team meeting, she needs to challenge a junior doctor's incorrect diagnosis. She spends extra time framing her correction carefully, conscious that her authority is often received differently than her white male colleagues' interventions. She carefully modulates her tone, includes praise with the critique, and makes sure to seem "approachable" - all whilst ensuring proper patient care isn't compromised.

The Teacher's Translation

In a secondary school English department, James, a British West Indian teacher, constantly navigates complex territory. When teaching Shakespeare, he's aware some students question his authority on "traditional English literature". During a staff meeting about curriculum diversity, he becomes the default spokesperson for "the Black perspective", even though he specialises in Victorian literature.

When discussing "A Christmas Carol" with his class, a student makes a racially insensitive comment. James must decide in that moment how to address this whilst:

· Maintaining classroom control

· Creating a teaching moment without derailing the lesson

· Protecting vulnerable students

· Not being seen as "making everything about race"

· Staying professional while processing personal hurt

The Tech Lead's Triple Task

Maya, a British Indian tech lead, faces layered challenges during code reviews. When reviewing a white male colleague's work, she must:

· Frame technical criticisms in ways that won't trigger defensiveness

· Provide more detailed justification for her decisions than her white peers typically need

· Navigate cultural nuances when her direct communication style is interpreted as "harsh"

· Maintain team cohesion while upholding technical standards

These scenarios show how non-white professionals often perform "workplace translation" - constantly converting their experiences, knowledge, and communication styles into forms acceptable to predominantly white institutions, whilst maintaining their authenticity and authority. It's like simultaneously performing in multiple plays, each with different scripts and audiences, all whilst making it look effortless.

Code Switching

Code-switching occurs when someone adjusts their language, behaviour, or self-presentation depending on their social context. For non-white professionals, this often means shifting between different cultural and professional "codes" - perhaps speaking one way at home, another with colleagues, and yet another during formal presentations.

In Guha's case, what makes this incident particularly revealing is that it shows what can happen when code-switching breaks down under pressure. As a cricket commentator, she regularly navigates multiple identities: her British professional persona, her Indian cultural heritage, and her role as a pioneering woman in sports broadcasting. Usually, she manages these transitions seamlessly - that's part of what made her successful.

But the use of the word "primate" suggests a moment where this careful balancing act faltered. Think of it like a performer who has mastered multiple accents suddenly slipping into the wrong one at an important moment. But in this case, the slip didn't just reveal an accent - it revealed something about the psychological strain of constantly managing these different identities in a space still shaped by colonial histories.

What makes this even more complex is that cricket commentary itself has its own specific "code" - a particular way of speaking that evolved in a distinctly British colonial context. Commentators are expected to demonstrate both expertise and a certain kind of cultural fluency. For someone like Guha, this means not just mastering cricket's technical language but also its cultural conventions, all while being conscious of her role as a representative of British Asian achievement in the sport.

The pressure of maintaining all these different codes simultaneously - professional commentator, cultural representative, cricket expert, pioneer for women in sports - can create moments where the careful switches between identities misfires. Instead of smoothly transitioning between codes, the strain can lead to unconscious language choices that reveal the underlying tensions of trying to fit into spaces still marked by colonial power dynamics.

This incident therefore isn't just about a simple verbal slip or a moment of poor word choice. It demonstrates how the constant pressure to code-switch perfectly can sometimes result in precisely the kind of language that careful code-switching is meant to avoid. It's a reminder that even successful navigation of multiple cultural and professional spaces comes with significant psychological costs.

The Enduring Relevance of Fanon’s Ideas

Fanon's ideas are particularly relevant to Guha's story in several key ways.

First, Fanon helps us understand the deep psychological pressure Guha faces as a British Asian cricket commentator. He wrote about how people living in post-colonial societies often develop what he called "double consciousness" - constantly seeing themselves through both their own eyes and through the eyes of the dominant culture. For Guha, this means simultaneously being a cricket expert, a British Asian woman, and a professional working in a traditionally white, male space.

Second, Fanon's concept of "internalised colonialism" helps explain how Guha, despite being of Indian heritage herself, could unconsciously use colonial racist language about another person of Indian heritage. Fanon explained that people who grow up in societies shaped by colonialism might unconsciously absorb and reproduce colonial attitudes, even when they consciously reject them. It's like having absorbed a language in childhood - it can slip out even when you're trying to speak another language.

Third, Fanon's writing about professional spaces is particularly relevant here. He described how non-white professionals in white-dominated institutions often feel intense pressure to prove their competence while simultaneously not appearing too threatening. This speaks directly to Guha's position as a ground breaking figure in cricket broadcasting. She must demonstrate expertise while maintaining what Fanon would call "acceptable" forms of self-presentation.

Fourth, Fanon's ideas about "cultural alienation" help us understand the broader context of cricket commentary itself. Cricket was historically used as a tool of British colonialism, with its particular language and customs reflecting British cultural dominance. When Guha enters this space as a commentator, she's navigating what Fanon would describe as a culturally alienating environment - one where success often means adopting the cultural codes of the coloniser.

Finally, Fanon's understanding of psychological strain under these conditions helps explain why someone as accomplished and conscientious as Guha might make such a striking verbal slip. He wrote about how the constant pressure to navigate colonial power structures can create moments of psychological rupture - times when the careful balance between different identities and expectations breaks down.

Understanding Guha's situation through Fanon's lens helps us see this wasn't just an individual mistake, but rather a symptom of deeper colonial psychological wounds that continue to affect professional spaces today.